Argentina: Rough Waters Ahead But I’m Still Sailing

“All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware.” -Martin Buber

My summer expeditions are drawing near an end; 5 more days to be exact. Tears are creeping into my eyes and my heart is beating a tad faster as a bit of anxiety is fighting its way in.

To say that this summer has been a remarkable journey for me, is an understatement. I’ve deeply appreciated and learned from each experience that landed in front of me. What really stands out though, are the relationships. While not all relationships had the opportunity to transition to long-term friendships, they are memories that will stick with me forever. What they had in common was two people willing to take a risk on each other; willing to be humiliated by saying the wrong word or pronunciation; willing to be open to hear the other’s perspective; willing to simply smile when no translation worked but charades sufficed. I am working to be more courageous in this area, as I know there were interactions I missed out on because I doubted my language skills. 

I started this summer with an open mind; allowing whatever was going to happen, to actually happen. I still have two more cities and one more country to experience before school starts back next Tuesday, but the slow-travel part of my journey ended when I left Mendoza. What I appreciate about slow-traveling is that you can begin to dig into a place, if you give it more than a few days and the tourist go of things. You begin to understand the culture and the why of things. You get curious and want to know more. In my core, there is a yearning to understand and learn from others different than me. It’s why I can’t shake the notion that I’m meant to live, learn and experience life from somewhere other than the US. I’ve hoped after each trip I’ve taken, that my curiosity would wan and my yearning would be satisfied. But it never has and it’s more intense than the superficial, “I wish I didn’t have to end this vacation” feeling.

These thoughts scare me though, because when I return back to my reality in the US, I will be confronted with some tough decisions. My instinct wants me to sell my house, get my “affairs” in order, finish teaching this school year and then hit the road. My initial plans would be to spend 2-3 months in a new city in South America and then move on to a new one, and continue doing this until I found the perfect fit.

This will be an incredibly difficult decision to make because I love my friends and family so much and being away from them will undoubtedly be sad. On the other hand, if I don’t try to make a go of the vagabond lifestyle, I’m deeply afraid I will regret it and life is too short for regrets.

I won’t be making the decision lightly, but maybe over a bottle of Malbec that I’m bringing back from Argentina. ;-)